TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION D. 197 



for such failure are not always explicable ; in some cases, 

 however, they are not far to seek, and I shall endeavour to 

 point out a few later on. The desirability of carrying on 

 experiments in naturalisation on a larger scale than could well 

 be attempted by private individuals led ultimately to the for- 

 mation of acclimatisation societies in the larger centres of 

 population. Some of these experiments have succeeded beyond 

 •all expectation, thus bringing about in some respects a com- 

 pletely-altered state of affairs. This has had one unexpected 

 effect — namely, that of causing many of the parent societies to 

 split up into numerous petty branches, each managing its own 

 affairs within a somewhat limited area. At the present time 

 there are no less than twenty-three so-called acclimatisation 

 societies in the colony — namely, twelve in the North Island 

 and eleven in the South Island. Some of these sprung into 

 existence as anglers' associations : the parent societies having 

 stocked the fresh waters of a district with trout and other fish, 

 the local anglers thus acquired the right of controlling the 

 revenues, &c., of these waters. Others originated as farmers' 

 ■clubs, the primary motive being apparently the protection of 

 the settlers against evils caused by the animals and plants 

 which they have themselves introduced. 



(b.) Introduction op New Forms op Life by Conscious 

 Human Agency and Accidentally. 

 New forms of life have been introduced into these Islands 

 not only purposely, but largely also by accident, or, rather, un- 

 consciously. Eeference has just been made to the experiments 

 which have been in progress for the last century- — experiments 

 which have been carried out in a most systematic manner 

 during the last two decades. Apart, however, from this agency 

 working in definite directions, and oftener making failures than 

 successes, a large naturalisation of organic forms has been 

 taking place accidentally. Seeds of plants introduced for the 

 garden, the pasture-land, or tlae hedge-row, have in a great 

 number of instances become quite wild. Among interesting 

 examples are the cases of EscJischoltzia californica, which has 

 established itself in many parts of the Upper Clutha basin, in 

 spite of the severe winter frosts of that region ; and scarlet 

 geranium, which is wild in many parts of the North Island, 

 White clover and many European grasses have spread over 

 wide areas where they were never sown ; the broom, the whin, 

 and the dog-rose now cover acres of ground near roads and 

 fences ; while vast numbers of weeds of cultivation are to be 

 found in our fields and waste places. This fact impressed itself 

 strongly on Sir J. D. Hooker, who, in an appendix to the 

 " Handbook to the New Zealand Flora," makes the following 

 remarks (p. 757) : " The rapidity with which European weeds, 



